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Countries covered: United Kingdom AMA Research have published the 8th edition of the ‘Office Furniture Market UK 2006-2009’ report. The report incorporates original research and is a comprehensive and up-to-date review of the market - representing a worthwhile investment and with over 100 pages giving excellent value for money. Product Areas Reviewed:- Desking - Executive, System, and Economy. Seating - Adjustable and Non-Adjustable. Storage - Shelving, Bookcases, Cupboards, Filing Cabinets, Personal, Shared, Archive. Other - Screens and Computer Trolley’s Compiled by marketing professionals with experience of the Conservatory market, our report answers the need for both a comprehensive review of market developments and a detailed analysis of influencing factors and possible future trends. The office furniture market is worth around £710 million in the UK. The market has been under pressure for some years, from a poor office construction sector and high levels of commercial office space available, though service sector business confidence levels have improved over the last 18 months and the IT and telecommunication sectors have shown the first performance improvements since the early part of the decade. These factors suggest there are likely to be improvements for the office furniture industry over the next few years. The current market conditions remain difficult, although the market has been supported by positive performance in the SOHO sector. The market remains highly competitive with surplus supply capacity remaining and increasing threats from imports, resulting in shifting distribution structures. Key Areas of Interest Include:- Changing working practices in the UK and likely impacts on office furniture. The changing nature and impact of the SOHO market, growth of alternative distribution channels. Office property space activity and likely impacts on the office furniture market. Improving levels of business confidence and the likely impacts on the office furniture industry. Key areas of coverage in the report include:- MARKET Total office furniture market - analysis of size by value, current situation, historical trends, forecasts, reasons for changes and background influences. Future prospects of the office furniture market to the year 2009. Imports and Exports - trade balance, major countries supplying imports. Key influences on the development of the office furniture market, technology, call centres, the SOHO market, new working practices and environmental considerations. The office construction market - analysis by size, public/private sector mix, historical trends and future prospects, RMI and its influence on market trends THE PRODUCTS Major product groups within the office furniture market, share of the market. Desking market - analysis by size, historical trends with forecasts to 2009. Trends in functionality and design, other desking trends including pedestals, impact of changing working practices and technological developments, future prospects, greater market fragmentation. Seating market - analysis by size, historical trends, forecasts to 2009. Mix of seating market by type i.e. adjustable/non-adjustable, reasons for growth of adjustable, influence of changing regulations, new product features, material usage, different types of seating, innovations. Storage market - size by value with historical trends and forecasts to 2009. Mix of storage units by material and mix by type i.e. shelving/cabinet/cupboards. Other office furniture e.g. mobile computer trolleys, partitioning/screening. SUPPLY AND DISTRIBUTION Major suppliers, market shares, product and market positioning. Key company information for major companies. Changes in market structures. Other suppliers involved in desking & tables, seating, storage & partitioning. Major channels of distribution - shares by type of channel, areas of growth and decline, future trends and opportunities. Key outlets involved in the major channels of distribution FUTURE PROSPECTS Prospects for the Office Furniture market - major factors influencing short and longer term prospects. Developments in the major product and market sectors. Supplier and distribution developments.

Additional Information

In 2005, the UK Office Furniture market was worth around £715 million at MSP. The UK Office Furniture market has been in decline since 2001, when the industry and the business environment suffered a sharp deterioration, as a result of the sharp downturn in the IT and internet sectors in particular, and the resultant affect of this on business confidence generally and in the service sector in particular. These factors have lead to a difficult trading period for office furniture through to 2005.

Indeed the market has continued to contract through 2005, with companies having to cut prices further to maintain share, due to a surplus of supply capacity over demand. The home office sector of the market has shown some growth over this period underpinning the overall market.

Future prospects are more optimistic for the Office Furniture sector in the medium term. The commercial new build sector has improved throughout 2005 and 2006. This should lead to more positive business confidence and a more positive office furniture industry as a result, over the next few years.

This had been a difficult market in recent years, with high levels of availability in office space, though available office space in London is currently on a reducing trend. Although the commercial new build sector has performed better since 2004, this will take time to impact directly upon the office furniture market, though it should lead to increased business confidence and business investment.

Key influences in the market included commercial property activity, ‘off-shoring’ and technological developments, including better cable management and the increased use of wireless technologies around the office.

Imports and exports are significant, relative to the scale of the UK Office Furniture market with imports currently valued at £260 million and exports at £136 million.

Imports have risen steadily and in 2005 there was an 11% rise on the level of imports driven mainly by the increase of imports from China and the United States, in certain sectors of the office furniture market.

Exports have increased in recent years and 2005 saw a 12% increase, driven primarily by the increase in the export of seating products to Ireland. All sectors experienced a rise in the level of imports, with Storage/Screens seeing the biggest rise. EC Countries continue to dominate office furniture imports with Italy and Germany being the major trading partners. Outside the EC, imports from China have risen sharply, while there has also been a rise in levels from the US.

Similarly levels of exports also increased throughout each sector, with seating experiencing the biggest rise.

The market is comprised of four separate product sectors, which includes desking (the main sector accounting for 41%), seating, storage and screening / others. The overall percentage shares have remained reasonably stable since 2004.

In 2005, the Desking market was worth an estimated £295 million at manufacturers sales prices (msp). This sector consists of three sub sectors, which include executive, systems and economy stand-alone desking.

The Seating sector is the second largest product sector in the Office Furniture market and is currently valued at around £226 million. While ergonomic seating is still an important issue, the market is becoming ever more budget led with ergonomic seating ranges becoming more available in the mid and to some extent lower market segments.

In the Storage sector the trend over recent years has been towards more aesthetically pleasing wood finishes, although metal products remain the most popular for shared storage. The market is estimated to be worth £132 million in 2005. One of the primary drivers in the storage sector is the increased requirement for personal storage and integrated storage, partly due to increased employee mobility and changing working practices.

The ‘Screening/ Others’ sector incorporates both screening and other products such as computer trolleys. This market sector is estimated to be valued at £62 million in 2005, with the continuing demand for screen systems in open plan offices fuelling the sector.

The Office Furniture market remains fiercely competitive with a large number of suppliers within the market and with a number of acquisitions and some companies going into administration. In terms of the overall shares, there has been some movement, in 2005, the top six suppliers accounted for 36% of the market by value, this a slight decrease of 1% on 2003. The largest supplier in the UK is generally regarded as Herman Miller, with Senator and Bisley close behind in terms of market share.

Other significant suppliers include Dams International, Komfort Office Environments, Steelcase, EFG Matthews and Kinnarps.

The two main distribution channels for Office Furniture are via the dealer network or direct to end users. Retail and superstore sales have increased as a result of continuing growth in the SOHO market. There has also been small increase in Internet sales particularly through e-procurement.

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